Q&A: Josh Goodhue

14 Mar 2018

Schooled at MAGS and now playing his provincial rugby in his native Northland, Josh Goodhue adds to the solid depth in the Blues’ second row for his second season of Super Rugby.

Who do you flat with in Auckland?

All the Northland Taniwha boys, Sam Nock, Kara Pryor, Matt Moulds and Tamati Tua. It’s in Greenlane, which is nice and handy.

What’s your favourite place in Auckland?

Probably Barilla Dumpling on Dominion Road. That’s the best thing about Auckland, just the variety of food, so I get into the Asian stuff.

What’s your earliest rugby memory?

When we were about four years old, Mum dragging Jack and I down to play club rugby in Kawakawa. I was just crying my eyes out because we didn’t want to play and didn’t know anyone.

Speaking of Jack, your twin, how often do you text or call him?

Once or twice a week, usually just a Snapchat to see how he’s going.

Does that include any week in which you might be playing against each other?

That’s only happened once so far. But it’s usually just random stuff.

Tell us something not many people would know about you.

After high school, I went and did bar-tending for a year (2014), so I wasn’t taking rugby too seriously. I was at home, working out of Paihia. I was still training, but took a year off after an intense time at First XV.

Career highlight thus far?

That NZ Barbarians game against the (British and Irish) Lions in 2017. They packed the stadium in Whangarei. It was a dream come true for a Northland boy. There were a few jealous Taniwha boys.

Who’s the team joker in the Blues?

Kara Pryor is up there. He loves to have a laugh. Sometimes he does it a bit too much.

What’s it going to take for the Blues to make the playoffs this year?

We’ve got complete buy-in to our game plan. We just need to listen to what our coaches say and trust in them.

Who was your sporting idol when growing up?

I had a few, but in terms of rugby, Brad Thorn. Just his work-rate and how he trained the house down. Now, I also like Clay Matthews of the Green Bay Packers in the NFL.